Robbery of Main Office Location

Our main office location was robbed on Friday, May 18th just after 3:00 PM in the afternoon. There was just one robber involved in the robbery that involved a note demanding money from one of our tellers. The good news is that no employees or members were injured during the robbery and the robbery suspect was apprehended on May 20th. Our credit union staff did a tremendous job of remaining calm and securing the crime scene following the robbery. Multiple security video sources have been utilized in documenting the robbery and the actions of the robber before, during, and after the robbery. The evidence in this case is very strong and we feel confident of a conviction of the suspect in custody.

We are extremely thankful for the actions of the Huntsville Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigations in this case. We also are very appreciative of the many members and friends within the community who were concerned for our safety and well being after the robbery. Robberies seem to be increasing throughout the community. The security of our employees and members is our primary objective. Overall security measures are being evaluated as a result of this robbery.

Any robbery can be a scary event for the victims involved in the robbery. Our impacted staff have received counseling to deal with the emotional issues that can develop from a robbery event. Additional counseling sessions will be available going forward.

We are very thankful for the outcome of this particular robbery. No one was injured, any money lost was insured, the robbery suspect was apprehended, and the criminal case is expected to produce a conviction. This is the best possible outcome from a robbery incident.

Many Uses for VISA Gift Cards

VISA Gift Cards have been gaining in popularity because of the many uses of the prepaid cards. Most people think about VISA Gift Cards as a universal gift for the many occasions that take place over the course of a year. Birthdays, graduations, weddings, Christmas gifts, anniversary's, and house warming events are all applicable uses for VISA Gift Cards when given as a gift.

Consumers are beginning to realize the value of VISA Gift cards though for a variety of reasons that can help themselves. More and more travelers are purchasing VISA Gift Cards since the cards are accepted anywhere that accepts VISA. Parents are using these cards as a safety net for children going off to school or being away from home from a short time. These VISA Gift Cards are great for Internet purchases which prevents exposing your own credit or debit card numbers in online data bases. Internet usage of the VISA Gift Cards is available with a simple online registration process for the card. Another growing use of VISA Gift Cards by consumers is using the prepaid cards to prevent unwanted overdraft fees on their checking accounts. If members get into financial trouble with overdrafting their checking accounts with their checkbook or VISA Debit Card, purchasing and using a VISA Gift Card will eliminate overdraft fees since you can only spend what is available on the card. Members who have lost and reordered a new VISA Debit Card can also benefit from a prepaid VISA Gift Card during the interim time it takes to receive the new VISA Debit Card.

There are obviously many beneficial uses of VISA Gift Cards. All offices of North Alabama Educators Credit Union sell VISA Gift Cards for a price of $2 per card. The cards can be loaded with prepaid amounts of $10 up to $500 per card.

Low Rates on Deposits

Most credit union members are aware that deposit rates have remained low for some time now. The Federal Reserve overnight target rate has been 0.00% to 0.25% for an extended period of time and is not expected to change until 2014. Investment options available to the credit union on our investments remain low, especially given the fact that the credit union's investment portfolio remains conservative for the safety of our membership.

North Alabama Educators Credit Union saw an increase in total assets during 2011 of roughly 7.00% which was the outcome of members bringing their deposits to the credit union. The flip side of our balance sheet is loans and investments. Loans to members saw a decrease of roughly 2.00% during 2011 which can be attributed to a weakened economy and reduced loan demand throughout the industry. Ideally, a credit union wants to maintain a fairly matched level of new deposits and new loans. The investment market remains low as stated earlier so loans to members is the preferred usage of money that comes into the credit union from deposits.

What does this mean to our credit union members? Unfortunately it is a good time for borrowers but a bad time for savers. Our loan rates are already low and will be dropping further on various loan programs. Our deposit rates on regular shares, super shares, certificates, and IRA's are lower than other financial institutions for the time being. We would encourage our members to compare available offerings on certificates maturing with North Alabama Educators Credit Union. We want our members to earn the most that they can on their hard earned dollars.

As the economy and loan demand improves over time we fully expect to offer more competitive rates on our deposit accounts. The credit union is a financial cooperative so deposits and loans go hand in hand. Longer term members might remember an old credit union phrase of "nobody borrows until somebody saves". These days the opposite is true as credit unions are seeing an influx of deposits combined with the flat or negative growth in loans. This current trend will change over time as economic cycles always do.

Public Deposits - Letter to the Editor

The Huntsville Times published my "letter to the editor" this past weekend. I appreciate the newspaper publishing this submission. Below is the text of the letter;

Rep. Mike Ball and Sen. Bill Holtzclaw have filed bills in the House and Senate that would allow credit unions to become qualified public depositories. HB 315 and SB 299 seek to give credit unions the ability to accept public deposits, providing municipalities such as fire departments, schools, libraries, and local government entities a choice in where to put their money.

There is no legitimate reason credit unions should be prevented from being public depositories. Municipalities deserve the right to choose where to deposit their money. Credit unions are locally-owned and federally insured. Credit union profits get returned to the membership through lower fees, better loan rates, and better returns on deposits. Permitting credit unions to compete for deposits not only helps keep bank savings rates higher, it creates flexibility for municipalities and the opportunity for higher yields on the public deposits.

At a time when local and state government are tightening their budgets to find effective ways of managing public money, credit unions should not be forced to turn them away. This legislation is about choice – and the choice should be in the hands of municipalities working for the public, not in the hands of banks working for themselves. Thirty-three other states allow credit unions to accept public deposits, it’s time Alabama gives its municipalities a choice.

Sincerely,

Greg A. Olmsted, President/CEO
North Alabama Educators Credit Union

Children Away at College?

Parents with children attending college away from home know the difficulties of transferring money to their child for unknown expenses. College students also receive checks for a variety of reasons while at school. How can the parent and college student stay connected financially when they live far apart from one another?

North Alabama Educators Credit Union has a solution to meet a variety of financial needs for students attending college away from home. The Credit Union Service Center (CUSC) network provides over 4,400 branches nationwide where a member can transact basic transactions like deposits, withdrawals, loan payments, and check cashing services. For example, college students attending the University of Alabama and Auburn University have a branch nearby that is available for these type of transactions. Best of all, the branch access is free of charge.

A parent or guardian could deposit money into the student's account here in Huntsville and the student could withdraw the money from the CUSC location close to the school. If a student received a check for some reason at school they could deposit that check at the CUSC location as well. Again, these transactions do not have a charge which is better than withdrawing money at another financial institution's ATM that might have a hefty surcharge fee for a withdrawal. North Alabama Educators Credit Union is a member of the CO-OP ATM network which provides over 28,000 ATM's nationwide for free cash withdrawals.

Most college towns have a CUSC location nearby since most colleges and universities have a credit union nearby. To search for available CUSC locations, visit the online site at http://www.cuservicecenter.com/. The cooperative nature of credit unions working together to provide this expanded branch access is a valuable benefit for credit union members.

Fake Checks

Fake checks continue to circulate throughout the country. How can you spot a good check from a bad check? Not easily. The technology of printers today allow thieves to print off good copies of legitimate checks. This is why check holds on deposits are much more common now.

The best method of identifying a possible counterfeit check is by looking at the reasons on why the check was received in the first place. Strangers don't send checks for thousands of dollars to other strangers for no reason. If a check recipient is asked to send part of the check proceeds back to the stranger for any reason, there is a 99.9% chance that the check is a counterfeit item. Mystery shopper programs, sweepstakes and lottery contests, inheritance gifts from long lost (and unknown) relatives, payroll processing job offers using a consumer's personal account, and Internet sales where the buyer sends more than is needed for the purchase price are all examples of scams involving counterfeit checks.

Victims of these scams often say later that they had a bad or uneasy feeling about the fake checks being negotiated. They convince themselves though that the official check and overnight mail package could only have come from a "legitimate" entity. These same victims also refer to official looking websites and mail correspondence that looks like the real thing. Criminals can copy and reproduce anything. They try to build confidence in the victim's mind that the offer being presented is the real deal. Sadly, greed is also a contributing factor to many of these fake check scams as the victims are promised easy money for their efforts.

Don't be a victim. Ask your credit union or financial institution to research the item and be sure to provide all information about how the check was received. Depositing a counterfeit check item is a crime so be sure that all check items are legitimate BEFORE they are deposited.

The website below provides excellent resources and information regarding fake check scams;
http://fakechecks.org/

Scholarship Money from NAECU

Our annual scholarship contest is underway with $1,500 being available for our 1st place winner and $750 being available for our 2nd place winner. The scholarship application is available at any office or online at the link provided below. The deadline for submitting the completed scholarship application is Monday, April 2, 2012. (The form states April 1st but since April 1st falls on a Sunday we will accept applications through the following day).

The essay portion of the scholarship this year will be a typed essay of at least 250 words on "How can financial institutions improve their value to consumers?".

We would encourage our members who are graduating high school this semester to apply for the available scholarship money. Keep in mind that all students of public or private schools in Madison, Morgan, or Limestone Counties are eligible for credit union membership with North Alabama Educators Credit Union.

Best of luck to all scholarship candidates! Here is the credit union page for additional information and the scholarship application;

http://www.naecu.org/news/scholarship.html